21.11.2006

Despite the fact that I really enjoyed Kingdom Hearts 2, I can't get over the fact that it was, when all is said and done, too easy. Don't expect the same level of challenge as any Squaresoft games, despite the inclusion of many Final Fantasy characters. This plays more like a Disney movie tie-in than anything else, and the difficulty curve seems (at the beginning, at least) to be set at pre-teenager level. In my view it's also easier than the first Kingdom Hearts.It sounds like I didn't like the game, but let me assure you that I did. As a gaming experience goes, it's pretty engrossing. No to mention the fact that it's also extremely long...the prologue to the game proper (by which I mean the appearance of Sora)is drawn out into an entire game in it's own right, consisting of exploration, mini-games and travelling around several locations which takes you into multiple hours of gameplay before you've even really started! Having said that, though, the gameplay as Sora pitches you into lots of Disney themed worlds that are actually pretty short chapters when viewed individually. I usually finished a whole "world" in a single sitting, which is a bit of a shame. The worlds are quite compact, and the ones that appeared in the first game such as Halloween Town are now disappointingly small. There isn't even a nice big hub town like Traverse Town with all those hard to reach secret areas any more. But there's always plenty to do.So what's going on then? Well I have to say you may be hard pushed to work out the plot a lot of the time, but it seemed to involve Sora, Donald and Goofy fighting famous Disney bad guys and activating (or unlocking) a keyhole in each world they visit, while all the time being observed/hindered by a shadowy sect known as "Organisation XIII". Along the way there are sub quests and optional arena battles, as in the first game, and even if you struggle with some of the more obscure parts of the plot, you'll (nearly) always know who's good and who's bad.Fighting is a breeze, in fact I'm sure they have simplified it, because there aren't many battles, even boss fights, where you have to do much more than face the enemy and whack the X button as many times as you can. This is a shame in the boss battles in particular, as you will very often miss out on a lot of the character of each boss fight because you are primarily concerned with bashing one button as fast as you can, beacause that's simply the most effective way of winning, regardless of what a bosses signature moves or spectacular special attack is. The menu also offers a whole host of tempting battle abilities to be assigned, but in practise it only means that mashing the X button even more times leads to better, longer lasting attacks. Using magic is also very much a secondary thing in battle. The access to the magic shortcut involves just too much finger fiddling for me and I don't think I ever used it except for some curing in the very end boss fights. There is, however, some fun to be had in the new "Reaction Commands" function, in which a special battle option pops up in cases of clever positioning or fortunate parrying. In these cases, a swift bash of the triangle button gives you a special scripted move which can really turn the tide of battle in your favour. Although you don't have to worry about this too much, it's easy to use (there's a huge prompt on screen when the command is available), and fun to test your reflexes too, as the windows of opportuinity can be very small.But for the main bulk of the story, things never get too difficult. I scarcely broke into a sweat on any bosses, time-attack fights or mini-games. And whilst on the subject of mini games, let me warn you now - the optional stuff can be scarcely above pre-schooler level. Tapping out rhythms along with the Little Mermaid, or flying through the air and avoiding obstacles with Winnie the Pooh had me in serious boredom territory. This is for 5 year olds, the kind of stuff that comes with those educational games that generously reward the barest challenge...OK, maybe it's me, maybe I'm too old.However, I will say that despite the game certainly being aimed at the younger player, as you move into the final stages some stiffer challenges do start to come up. The toughest fights of all really have to be searched for though, like the Hades Arena battles that open up MUCH later on, but finishing the game story should not be too much of a struggle. I will say though that they really do save the hardest for last, with the final battle being pretty long and quite meaty. It also looks fantastic, and, like the castle in the first game, you have an impressive celestial stronghold to ascend before you reach this showdown. In fact, I would go as far as to say that the last few hours of playing time, from the entry to The World That Never Was onwards, to be quite spectacular. With this ending taken into account, I can't really complain about the easiness too much.What I can complain about, though, is the Gummi Ships. Once again, the Gummi Ship creation mode is totally indecypherable. I was told this had been improved since the first game, but I got absolutely nowhere with creating new ships, the menu and instructions are the most bewildering thing I have ever seen. Thank goodness it was all optional. That said, the actual flights in the ship through battles in space were much better this time around. But I never wanted to do them more than once. Sorry, Chip and Dale, you're cute but your Gummi crafts are way beyond my patience or understanding.So I'll stick to the good aspects. There's a lot of fun in the details of this game. A LOT of work has gone into it. In every world you go to, your party (and the little HUD) changes slightly in appearance, from the "Steamboat Willie" stage where the three appear in black and white, looking like they might have done if drawn in 1928, to the Lion King world, where they appear in the shape of jungle animals! The worlds are all impressively detailed, with some lovely scenery and distant views - notably in the Lion King world - although you are quite tightly limited with regard to where you can actually go in all these world, inviting as they look. Another improvement is that your two partners Donald and Goofy have been made much more customiseable this time round, with lots of options to set to your liking. Although they still waste your best items with little regard for economy if you let them (I was very mean and stopped them having any itmes most of the time!) Sora too, has a very long list of abilities, and although I just turned them all on and hoped for the best, a dedicated player could certainly cusiomise his favourites into some killer combos.To wrap up, this is a game that plays best for the story rather than the challenge. If you enjoy a journey more if it is a sightseeing ramble rather than a steep painful hike, then this is the game for you. The characters are still very likeable and not too sugary (except the terminally annoying Winnie The Pooh - if it wasn't for getting the reward items I would have glady seen that 100 Acre Wood burned to the ground!). And there is a lot of comedy to be found, although I didn't find the finale to be as moving as in the first game, its still got a nice ending. All in all, the mere fact that playtime can last well past the 30 hour mark is impressive enough to make it worth a purchase

14.11.2006

Before I get down to reviewing Kingdom Hearts 2, I feel as though I should say that having to wait this long for it was beyond ridiculous. When the first game came out in America back in October 2002, us UK gamers only had to wait a month to get our hands on it. Kingdom Hearts 2 came out in the US back in March and we had to wait SIX months for it to be released over here! Incredible.Now that I've got that out of my system, I finally have the game I've been waiting almost four years for. Chain of Memories for the Game Boy Advance was great but could only temporarily satisfy my hunger.Kingdom Hearts 2 takes place a year after the events of Chain of Memories. But before Sora, Donald and Goofy make their return,the story starts out in a world called Twilight Town, focusing on a newcomer called Roxas. Roxas is being plagued with dreams of Sora and soon finds himself subjected to weird happenings. It's not long until the Keyblade mysteriously falls into his possession and he encounters DiZ, Naminé and Axel, the only member of the Organization to have survived and returned from the events of Chain of Memories.Soon, however, Sora, Donald and Goofy are back in the fray, and have to contend once more with returning Disney villains and the Heartless, as well as a brand new threat; the Nobodies and the remaining members of Organization XIII. The events that follow complicate matters and their desire to find their lost friends.Kingdom Hearts 2's visuals are absolutely stunning. Right from the CGI movies to the in-game graphics. As with KH1 and KH: COM, the game has the feel of a Disney movie and works on every level. It's still amazing that Disney and Final Fantasy crosses over and succeeds. And the fact that the worlds are based on cartoon AND live-action this time around justifies how flawless the presentation is. Nothing feels out of place here.The sound is, for the lack of a better term, godlike. Kingdom Hearts' music score and voice acting was near perfect. In the sequel, the orchestra and soundtrack is even better. The music for each of the worlds, boss fights and cut scenes are a real treat to listen to. Many famous pieces of Disney music have been recreated brilliantly for the game and the original pieces are full of emotion too.As with the first Kingdom Hearts, an all-star voice cast is present and there is plenty of greatness here. But there are a few things to be very picky about. For numerous reasons, not everyone could reprise their roles for this game, so sadly, there's no Billy Zane, David Boreanaz, Whoopi Goldberg, Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom among others, but the guys who fill in do a very good job nonetheless.The majority of the voice cast are at their top of their game and it shows. The Disney actors and guests who give life to the original characters naturally go without question. But the standout ones include Haley Joel Osment, who remains brilliant as Sora, this time giving a deep voice to the growing teenage hero. Jesse McCartney likewise is awesome as Roxas, so too Quinton Flynn as Axel. And of course, James Woods deserves all the credit in the world for his typically classic performance as Hades.But the best voice actor in the game, bar none, is unquestionably the great Christopher Lee, who gives such life to the enigmatic DiZ. There is no other voice on the planet that can give more credit to the character and you'll hear for yourself that I'm not exaggerating.The gameplay has changed from the first Kingdom Hearts. It's similar but noticeably different. Fights are still in real-time but many new features have been incorporated, such as reaction commands and the inclusion of Drive forms, which make Sora more powerful and are a welcome addition. There are now some cool double-team moves to pull off with party members, and the camera has thankfully been greatly improved from the last game, which was diabolical. Although still not perfect, it's much better and such a relief to use.The Gummi Ship routes are back this time and also greatly improved. This time round, they are a great addition and are actually purposeful and thus more enjoyable, with extra missions and ships to be unlocked. There are also plenty of secrets to explore, Coliseum tournaments to unlock, and numerous side tasks to accomplish in order, so there is plenty of replay value to keep you coming back for more.The most rewarding thing about playing Kingdom Hearts 2 is definitely the story. The stories in the first game and KH: COM were awesome, so naturally the story here is truly one of epic proportions from start to finish, right from Roxas' tragic tale to the poignant resolution. Everything comes together and the mysteries regarding DiZ, Naminé, and the Organization are finally revealed. The answers are immensely satisfying and prove that Square-Enix knew what they were doing all along. Startling new revelations also come to light regarding KH1's main antagonist, Ansem, thus making a very interesting villain even more interesting than ever before.There are also some tremendous sub-plots that are great in their own right. Having played KH1, I still had a few doubts as to what would work and what wouldn't. Kingdom Hearts 2 proved me wrong by showing that anything can work. The Pirates of the Caribbean world springs to mind, as does the Tron world, which plausibly plays an important role in the main story. And like last time, the Winnie the Pooh world fits in perfectly and is absolutely charming and enjoyable.In closing, Kingdom Hearts 2 was well worth the wait. There are a few things to nitpick about, so it's not perfect, but like the previous games, it's very close to being perfect. All fans WILL be satisfied.

20.8.2006

Kingdom Hearts II is in every way a worthy sequel to the first, and perhaps even better, something that is difficult to believe.The story starts out a little slow, however. You are virtually stuck in a bog of cutscenes. Overall, you probably move about 100 steps in the first few hours or so, which is not a lot. The fighting is pretty basic, and you have to put up with these annoying messages at the top of the screen every time you enter a significant battle. However, this all changes once you start out as Sora.From then on, it is more like the original Kingdom Hearts, however there is a more controlled feel to the game. It may feel very linear at first,since you are often directed places and you don't really get a chance to explore. The majority of the boss battles are ridiculously easy on standard -- I would definitely advise playing Proud mode, especially since it makes it easier to get the secret ending later on.The game has several new additions -- a new way of travelling to worlds, a new drive bar, limits gauge and summons gauge, as well as a new magic system, shorcut commands and reaction commands.The new gummi ship system I found absolutely horrendous. It was more entertaining that the old game, where you could just leave the ship to fly itself while you nipped off to have some tea, but far more challenging for someone like myself, who is not a very experienced gamer. I found this a negative point, but this is just my personal opinion, I think that several people will enjoy this new feature, don't let me put you off.The new Drive Forms -- there simply aren't words to describe how fantastic these are. Drive with Goofy, Donald, or both to gain new abilities or to just generally kick ass. I suppose the only fault of these is that they don't last long -- but then you can simply Drive again by using a very useful Drive Recovery item.Limits are also useful, albeit a bit annoying. Donald and Goofy's basic limits are probably the ones you'll end up using the most as they can help you out in several boss fights, but the more interesting limits are saved for when you have people like Mulan, Auron, the Beast and Tron in your party. I myself didn't use them very often in the game, but they are quite interesting and fun for now and then.Again with the summons, I think I used one summon the whole way through the game and that was by accident. The problem with this is that they use the Drive gauge, so you can't Drive. :( I much preferred Driving to summoning, thus the very low number of summons. I've heard that others have found them useful: to me, they are there if I'm desperate and nothing more.The new magic system -- I hate this system to death, and nothing will convince me otherwise. Magic is measured in a bar, and the simplest spell like Cura will use all your MP, leaving you defenceless until the MP gauge powers up. Limits also take up all your MP. Later on in the game, however, once you are more experienced and at a higher level, the MP system becomes more bearable since you don't need to depend on it for health anymore.Shortcuts are your saviour. You can now equip an item to your shortcut menu, something like potion or hi-potion makes up for the appalling magic system. There is the option of auto-reloading items after battle, a very nifty feature for those of us who are absent minded, but it does make you go rather rapidly through scores of potions.Reaction commands. Despite being sceptical at first, I am now converted. Your helping hand in many a boss fight, these are a clever implant that makes battles simply more interesting and a fair bit easier at times. ;)What else is there to say about this game? Despite its linear nature at first, you have to revisit worlds, meaning that by the end of the game you will have thoroughly explored them. There are the options of several mini-games all the way through, some exceedingly good fun, others, not so. The gameplay is good, the graphics excellent and the soundtrack every bit as wonderful as the first. The storyline will keep you hooked all the way up until the very last moment. Another bonus point [to me] is that Atlantica is now a side-quest, no more silly swimming! It's also easier to get the Ultima Weapon this time round, and with it, to face down the ultimate boss: Sephiroth...I'd definitely recommend this game: to me this outstrips any of the Final Fantasy games and is on par with the last one. Despite a delayed release, I would advise to just wait for it: it's worth it.

12.2.2007

In KHII you carry off from the storyline of KH1 and also Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories on the Gameboy Advance, another side sequel to KH1. Those who are familiar from playing the previous games would probably know the story and the main characters, so they will definately love the game due to the similar, but enhanced gameplay, more characters and worlds.As the player you control the main character, Sora, a young but now matured boy, who can weild a keyblade. This keyblade is used as his weapon, and there are several types you can obtain over time. Accompanied by Sora are other characters, mainly Donald and Goofy from Disney, who travel around with Sora to a variety of Disney worlds to solve problems they encounter.From the previous storylines, Sora was separated from his two best friends and now he is trying to find them, searching on different worlds. There are enemies called Heartless and in KHII the new ones called Nobodies, who come in a variety of forms, that spill into these worlds. Sora must use his magical keyblade to seal the gaps in the worlds and at the same time find his friends.The gameplay has been slightly enhanced from the previous games. As an action RPG you use the left analog stick to move Sora in any direction and also use the right analog stick to move the camera angle to different view points. With the analog stick you can make Sora walk or run, depending on how far you tilt the stick. The X button is used to confirm and attack, the O and Square buttons are used for abilites you eventually learn, like gliding and jumping. What is new to KHII is the reaction command, which is assigned to the triangle button. This is used when a particulaer event occurs in battles, or generally talking to non-playable characters.It is quite easy to handle the controls, even though someone may not have played any KH games before. The layout of the menus and sub-menus are easy to navigate through. These contain things such as eqipping, looking at stats and items.Other features new to KHII is the drive forms that Sora can transform into to use in battles. These forms make Sora stronger and faster, depending on what form you change into. For example, the first form called Valor, Sora's clothes change red and his attack increases, however, he cannot perform any magic while in this state. There is a drive gauge that eventually runs out, changing Sora back from his form. Features kept the same are summons, which aid you in battle, it depends on what powers they possess. For example, you may summon Genie from Aladdin to help you fight.There is the usual levelling up that is found in most RPG's, and also levelling up for drive forms and summons. As the higher the level for the gauges the more time the form or summon may last and of course the more levels Sora gains the more abilities he will learn.Side-quests are another feature which are optional, but fun to complete. For example, fighting the ever popular villain, Sephiroth from Final Fantasy 7, which is tough yet satisfying after completion and you get rewarded with new items and beautiful fmv and cut sequences, which appear in the throughout the game.The strong points to this game is not only the atmosphere of the worlds and characters, but also the music and voice acting, which enhances playing. Like walking around the worlds and then suddenly entering battles, the music changes to suit the situation. During the cutscenes the characters often talk, so they are lots of listening and not only reading. There are some brilliant voice acting, like from Haley Joel Osment, who plays Sora, but sometimes it can be annoying listening to voices that you don't want listen to.Overall Kingdom Hearts II would definatley appeal to those who have played the previous KH games, but also final fantasy gamers and those who love Disney. One would think that from the animation that it would be a kid's game, however this would also appeal very much to older audiences who would love a satisfying game to play, which is unique and not the usual blood covered zombies. Some may feel that the game may be too easy for them, as the gameplay does tend to be on the easy side, however the whole experience makes up for it

6.10.2006

I waited and waited for this game to finally arrive, worried that it wouldn't match up to the high standards set by Kingdom Hearts 1. How wrong I was!The game starts with you playing as Roxas, a boy from Twilight Town, you get to explore your world, find out about Organization XIII, the Heartless and the Nobodies. I did find this slightly tedious, as I knew the game wouldn't really get going until I started playing as Sora. However, you get to play some mini-games like delivering mail and putting up posters, which are fun and prevent this prelude to Sora becoming tedious.Once you take control of Sora, things improve dramatically. You're back with your trusty Keyblade plus your old pals Donald and Goofy.The Keyblade is different from the last time, in that instead of choosing how to modify it and building it up gradually into a better weapon, you simply get given a better Keyblade by completing the various worlds throughout the game. For me personally this was an improvement, as I am an impatient gameplayer who doesn't tend to spend time rooting around for different crystals and shards.However that comes with a downside, as if like me, you don't want to visit every chest and endlessly backtrack to defeat more monsters, you won't be able to get the best items out of the Moogles, who are cute little creatures who synthesise new items for you such as armour, earrings etc.Other changes to the game are that the worlds you visit are a lot easier to explore - they aren't as large and confusing as the first game (maybe only I found that?!), and also the storyline is more linear than the last. You basically visit each world, then once you've defeated bosses, you revisit the worlds to complete further tasks, some of which require you to have certain powers like Magnera (for the world of Atlantica). Be careful though, as you don't have to have completed all the worlds before you finish the game, although it's probably best to, as the last battle is epic, and requires Sora to have a decent weapon, and a high level of defense, magic & health.My favourite part of KH2 has to be the mini games - I loved the tournaments in KH1 and was glad to see the return of the Colliseum. You get to take part in such events as the 'Pain & Peril Cup', and new tournaments appear as you progress through the game. In Atlantica, home of the little Mermaid, you get to perform in Sebastian's musical, which involves a rhythm game - tapping buttons in time to music, which I thought was a great touch - esp. as I found Atlantica so difficult to complete in the first game!My only problems with the game are the endless cutscenes, which luckily you can skip through (note to other game developers - definitely a must!), and the shortness of the game. I found KH1 such a long, involving game, that I was slightly disappointed that I finished KH2 within about 3 days. However, it's so much fun playing that I know I'll go back to it again and again to replay it.Definitely buy this game, it's a classic, worth every penny!

2.10.2006

Well, i managed to get this game ealry (last tuesday) from a local retailer. Feel sorry for those who waited till friday, but i bet it was worth it, eh?Firsty i'd like to point out how amazing this game is, if you loved Kingdom Hearts you will love this as it totally blows the first one out the window.Gameplay:I have to admit the beginning of the game as Roxas is very slow, unless you are very involved in the KH storyline this area of the game may put you off. If you know nothing about the first KH i'm afraid you may be totally lost playing this game, i recommend playing the first before delving into KH2. As for the rest of the game when u enter the role of Sora, it is a very rewarding game experience,

5.10.2006

I won't lie, this review is based on 15 hours of gameplay, but I have seen enough to know one thing-this is incredible.The game revolves around Sora, who has been out of action for a while (I wont say why as it will spoil a nice twist,) who is now back on the scene along with Goofy, and Donald. Not only have the heartless made a return, but nobodies (yes nobodies) are running around causing havok as well on behalf of the new Organisation 13. Sounds a bit different, but don't worry, this is a great game.The graphics are as good as the originals, all disney characters (and other characters alike) have an authentic disney feal and surprising realism to them,

4.4.2007

About Kingdom Hearts I (Original) - First of all, I want to say how much I loved the original game, I loved the merge of the two worlds, all of the characters, storyline, locations, graphics and everything there was love about it! I couldn't leave the original alone, it had a very addictive & highly playable feel to the whole game, it had a very engrossing & intersting story and magical atmosphere (if not quite loose and short at times).Storyline - Now onto this game, overall I'm actually quite dissapointed, the storyline is very intersting but is far more complicated and far fetched than the originals. It's interesting enough to keep you there to try & understand what the connection to all of the new characters are to the old etc,

28.1.2007

Right im editing my Review because my other one about Kh2 didnt make muchsense so here goes.The first thing i must say is that this game is 12 plus not many 12 year olds buy this because they see disney characters on this and say that game has disney characters its going to be babyesh DONT LET THE DISNEY CHARACTERS DECEIVE YOU that what makes this game fun,if you havent played the first and you have got this game dont get the first because you will just get a glitch of what happends in the storyline and you will get bored because you will want action which is in the second one.First thing is first the graphics were good i will have to rate the graphics 9/10 but the Gc scenes OMG will blow you

10.8.2007

The Nintedo Wii seems to have shown that great graphics and intriguing stories are all very well, but nothing is more important for a game than for it to just be incredibly fun to play. It's lucky then that the original Kingdom Hearts game had all three of these aspects in bucket loads, and it's sequel doesn't hold back either.If you've played the original Kingdom Hearts (which I heartily recommend if you haven't) then you will be familier with the set-up: Sora and his buddies searching for his missing friends and defeating hoards of heartless amongst the gorgeously realised Disney worlds. Of course we visit new worlds, as well as revamped old ones, get to grips with the bizarre Nobodies and the shadowy Organization XII,

16.2.2007

This game is the eargerly awaited sequel to highly popular Kingdom Hearts (imaginatively titled, no?). Expect much of the same Disney/Final Fantasy fare starring Sora, Donald and Goofy with a host of other Disney/Final Fantasy characters.This game is absolutely fab for both Disney and Final Fantasy fans (if you like both then you are in for a REAL treat). You could be forgiven for thinking that this combination might not work, but it REALLY does.Due to its parts the gameplay is unsurprisingly a combination of platform and RPG, a combination that, like its parts, works really well. Say goodbye to mindless jumping/hitting/collecting or selecting fight/magic/item from a drop down menu while your characters stand about looking blank.The graphics,

8.2.2007

Remember when you constantly looked in all the game shops, and all they said was"it's notr out yet". gee, it sucked to be in the uk, when in america they got all the best games like 2 years before we did. We waited,l we waited, and waited some more, until, in September, our dreams came true.What did i tell ya. Ever since kingdom hearts and Final Fantasy X i've loved all RPG games. But to tell you the truth, this one is the best.Kingdom hearts 2 is by far the best RPG of all time. Scratch the thing i said about the previous one, this one is amazing. I couldn't believe that a game of this potential, the amount of power, could be ps2. I think the game deserves better,

19.11.2006

After losing interest in kingdom hearts 1, I forced myself to complete it and I'm glad I did because if I hadn't I may have missed out on this superb game.I'm 19, am a HUGE final fantasy fan and like most lads my age I can put up with a disney film although they aren't exactly a film of choice! However the integration between the 2 worlds is so surreal it fits perfectly. Unfortunatly the cheesy moments can be cringeworthy at times but thankfully there's not too many of them!The graphics are superb - but thats the high standard square enix have been setting for years now.The sound track is a mixed bag, but one which I really enjoyed.

12.6.2004

(read p.2 & p.3 if you are new to KH.)In KHII, Sora is back. Previews already suggest that this game is going to be darker than the first. It takes place a year later in KH time. It features new characters (Auron [FFX], perhaps Vincent [FFVII])and return of old ones; Kaira, Donald, Goofy, Mickey... and Ansem? Why get this game? Because it is going to be the best action RPG out there since KH 1. What makes this game so brilliant is the way that the storyline, the gameplay, the music, the effects, the characters and the cut-scenes combine to make the No.1 game of 2004.(Nobody could have played this game unless they are somehow connected to Square.

8.5.2007

The thing that struck me about this game is the sheer amount of different tactics you have to use to get through the game. With each boss you have to learn interesting ways to defeat them, be they in teh way you evade attacks, special attacks you can perform or the way you defend yourself.Also you can interact with most of the environments to help you out in battle in one way or another which really got my interested. Another point about the environments... it's HUGE! The whole game is big, you can find yourself getting lost for quite a while in some worlds, especially at the start of your visit.The gummi ship system is much simpler this time round and a hell of a lot more fun.The only thing that let me down was that the story was a bit pants,

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